Director of Brand Marketing

DIVE IN TO A NEW CAREER WITH LESLIE'S:

Leslie's Pool Supplies is the "World's Largest Retailer of Swimming Pool Supplies." With over 1,000 retail stores in 39 states plus PRO, Service, E-Commerce, Production, and Distribution divisions, there are many career opportunities at Leslie's. With over 60 years of providing best-in-class products and solutions to our customers, there is nothing that we value more than the development and growth of our team. We strive to create a positive and fun atmosphere where our Team Members feel valued and are enthusiastic about the contributions they make to the success of Leslie's.                

Job Overview:  

The Director, Brand Strategy & Planning will play a crucial role in the success of Leslie’s future campaigns and customer engagement. The primary responsibility of this role is to develop and implement the overall strategic direction for key initiatives and customer journeys, delivering a comprehensive marketing plan that significantly improves business performance.  This role will be responsible for supporting the different lines of business within Leslie’s including Residential, Trade and Commercial.  Additionally, this role will support new product introductions as well as key acquisition and retention programs.

Responsibilities: 

• Develop a strong understanding of customers, their needs, and behaviors.
• Own the quality of the creative brief and briefing process.
• Develop strong working relationships with counterparts in Marketing, and Store Operations, forming the basis of trust and action to move the strategic vision, customer insights and creative ideas into reality.
• Monitor market and competitor landscape shifts, trends, and insights.
• Deliver big ideas through insight discovery and market assessments.
• Complete brand positioning work and create marketing plans that defines the unique value proposition and competitive advantages, including:
  • Target audience: Detailed description of the primary customer segment.
  • Market analysis: Overview of the competitive landscape.
  • Brand promise: The core benefit or value the brand offers.
  • Key differentiators: What sets the brand apart from competitors.
• Ensure this blueprint serves as a guide for all marketing and communication efforts, maintaining consistency across all brand touchpoints.
• Build and lead a high-performing team.
• Provide regular feedback, coaching, and professional development opportunities.
• Lead and manage change initiatives, ensuring smooth transitions and providing proper support to team members and cross-functional partners.
• Cultivate a team culture of positivity, inclusivity, and high employee engagement.

Skills You Will Need

• Strategic Thinking: Ability to develop and implement comprehensive strategies that drive campaign success and align with business objectives.
• Customer Insight: Deep understanding of customer needs, behaviors, and market trends to inform strategic decisions and creative direction.
• Collaboration: Strong skills in building and maintaining relationships with key counterparts in Marketing Strategy, Creative, and Merchandising to ensure cohesive and effective campaign execution.
• Leadership - Serve as advisor and thought leader to internal business units on brand strategy, business impact and opportunity identification and assessment.
• Market Analysis: Proficiency in assessing market and competitor landscapes to identify shifts, trends, and insights that influence brand strategy.
• Brand Positioning: Expertise in defining and communicating the brand's unique value proposition, including creating detailed brand books that encompass target audience, market analysis, brand promise, differentiators, personality, values, and positioning statements.
• Project Management: Ability to oversee the creative brief and briefing process, ensuring high-quality outputs that align with strategic goals.
• Leadership: Proven track record of building and leading high-performing teams, providing feedback, coaching, and professional development, and managing change initiatives effectively.
• Creative Vision: Capability to inspire and guide creative teams to develop innovative ideas that resonate with target audiences and are rooted in cultural, human, and business insights.
• Analytical Skills: Understanding of measurement frameworks, data sets, media measurement, data visualization tools, performance reporting, and optimization to track and enhance campaign effectiveness.
• Communication: Excellent verbal and written communication skills to articulate strategic vision and creative ideas clearly and persuasively.
• Innovation: Capacity for unexpected, creative thinking that drives both creative and business results.
• Adaptability: Ability to thrive in a dynamic, fast-paced environment and manage multiple projects and priorities simultaneously.

Qualifications:

• Bachelor’s degree required, Master’s Degree Preferred
• 10 years of related experience in retail or consumer packaged goods (CPG).  Experience in B2B marketing preferred but not essential.
• 5 years of experience leading a marketing team, successfully motivating staff, managing performance, and achieving aggressive growth goals.
• Strong strategic thinking skills
• Proven experience in building and developing brands
• Ability to think creatively & bring innovative solutions to marketing challenges
• Demonstrated ability to thrive in a fast-paced, high-performance environment.
• Demonstrated ability to lead teams through creative design processes.
• Exceptional organizational skills with a keen attention to detail.
• Strong project management skills with the ability to manage multiple projects and deadlines.
• Impeccable written and verbal communication skills.
• Ability to work autonomously and take initiative.
• Experience communicating at a senior level

 Leslie's provides a robust benefits package, including:

• Comprehensive medical, pharmacy, dental, & vision plan options.
• Health savings account (with enrollment in the high deductible health plan option).
• Health & dependent care flexible spending accounts.
• Company-paid basic life and AD&D insurance.
• Voluntary supplemental life insurance.
• Company-paid short-term disability and voluntary long-term disability insurance.
• Pre-tax and Roth 401(k) with company match.
• Paid vacation, sick, and bereavement leave.
• Paid holidays, including a floating personal day.
• Employee assistance and wellness programs.
• Earned Wage access is available, allowing early access to a portion of your earned wages before payday.
• Product discounts at Leslie’s Retail stores.

Leslie’s recognizes a critical component to our continued success is our people. Leslie's is committed to developing and fostering a culture of diversity and inclusion within our company and the communities we serve. A key aspect of building a great team is valuing ideas from many viewpoints, which is why we place a priority on identifying and hiring talented individuals from all backgrounds and perspectives.